Diphtheria beginning in larynx and spreading upward; breathing hoarse and croupy; often snoring and breathing only possible through the mouth; one nostril stuffed, the other free and discharging thin mucus or thin blood; tenderness on pressure of larynx, more right side; great bodily restlessness, must be carried from place to place, hot palms of hands; corners of mouth sore.
LACHESIS.
Asthenia from the start. Membrane commences on the left side with tendency to spread to the right; purple livid color of inflamed parts, with dull, dry appearance and little swelling; intense pain accompanies an apparently small amount of inflammation; deep redness of fauces and tongue; constant attempt to put the tongue out of the mouth, which vibrates and trembles like a snakes tongue; discharge from nose and mouth foetid, thin, sanious and excoriating; swelling of the glands of the neck and of the cellular tissue; excessive perspiration and cardiac debility even before the exudation, cold clammy perspiration; cool extremities; somnolency delirium.
Diphtheritic croup, the child awakes from sleep smothering, has croupy cough, especially after a nap in daytime; liquids pain more when swallowing than solid food, (worse from swallowing saliva, from hot drinks, better from cold drinks), (Lyc. the reverse); spitting large quantities of ropy mucus; peculiar hard aching all over, so the position is constantly changed; constitutional symptoms greater than local manifestations; paralysis of throat and other parts after diphtheria; presbyopic during convalescence.
Sore throat with short cough, itching in spot when swallowing; neck stiff, head drawn to one side; pain in nape as if dislocated, when turning neck or bending head backward.
LYCOPODIUM.
Diphtheria of right side and nose and spreading to left side; desire for warm drinks which are grateful to the throat; children are cross and naughty when awaking from their nap; yellow, thick, acrid discharge from nose; fauces brownish-red, dry tongue, and inability to breathe through nostrils; tonsils, tongue and fauces swollen, with spasms on swallowing; he is forced to keep his mouth open to get breath; parotid swelling; projecting tongue and silly expression; perfect stupor, every symptoms hinting to cerebral paralysis; dropping of lower jaw; rapid, rattling breathing; snoring, unconsciousness, grinding of teeth, even when fully awake.
MERCURIUS CYANATUS.
Adynamic fever from the start. Putrid diphtheria; foetor oris and tenderness of the salivary glands without much swelling, or glands swollen and cellular tissue of neck infiltrated; nasal cavities, mouth, fauces, pharynx and larynx covered by a dark- gray or green thick, leathery exudation and ulceration; profuse epistaxis and incessant salivation; very free perspiration from the least motion; excoriating discharge from nostrils; excessive prostration with burning skin; blue face, cold extremities; filiform pulse; aversion to all food; heart weak so the least change of position causes fainting.
MERCURIUS IODATUS FLAVUS.
Diphtheritic membrane yellow, worse on the right side from warm drinks or from empty deglutition; great thirst for cold water, can swallow only in little sips, as throat is so full; constant disposition to hawk, caused by excessive secretion of mucus, very difficult to dislodge; considerable salivation which makes the chin sore; posterior wall of pharynx red, irritated, inflamed and dotted with patches looking like small ulcerated spots; nose obstructed with thick yellow scabs and membranes, all worse on right side; tongue yellow, with tip and edges clear and red; foetid discharge from fauces and nares; oedema of neck and throat; glands swollen and infiltrated; deposit of limited extent, transparent, pellicular, albuminous and easily detaches; urine scanty and high-colored; craves acid drinks.
MERCURIUS IODATUS RUBER.
Swallowing painful, both of solids and fluids; patches mostly on let tonsil, velum elongated; must hawk and swallow from the collection of saliva or mucus or from feeling of a lump in throat, livid patches; exudation limited, transparent, easily detached; discharge thin and offensive, enlarged glands; wants his food well salted, but drinks little.
MURIATIC ACID.
Grayish-white membrane on fauces, with choking on swallowing; parts appear dark bluish, are raw and smart; dark, foetid nasal discharge, weak empty feeling in stomach with loss of appetite; nosebleed; weak, drowsy; pulse intermittent; typhoid condition with most intense prostration; involuntary stool and urine; mouth studded with ulcers having a dark or black base and dipping deep in with tendency to perforate; blood dark and putrid.
NAJA TRIPUDIANS.
Suffocating spells on lying down, particularly when lying in bed suffocative spells of cough after every sleep, however short; the cough is deep, hoarse; respiration wheezing, rasping, very tight and difficult; better from daylight till noon; retention of urine; yellow, watery stools, Impending paralysis of heart, patient blue or pale, awakens from sleep gasping, pulse filiform, intermittent.
NATRUM ARSENICATUM.
Not much pain despite the dark purplish hue of the throat, the great swelling and the great prostration. Uvula hangs down like a sack of water; fauces and pharynx look red and glassy; throat painful on empty swallowing, but so soreness on swallowing food or drink; though, yellowish mucus in posterior nares and upper part of pharynx, with considerable hawking to free the throat; neck feel stiff (Lachn.) and sore, troubles sleep; cold, clammy sweat; heart oppressed from least exertion; pulse irregular, variable, slower than usual.
NITRIC ACID.
Nasal diphtheria; discharge from nose watery and very offensive, excoriating every part it touches (Arum), with white deposits in nares; ulcers in mouth with stinging in them as if from splinters (Lac.can); difficult and painful deglutition; excessive salivation; fauces and glands swollen; foetor oris; chilliness and still aversion to heat; nosebleed; distress and uneasiness in stomach with total rejection of all food; great uneasiness; excessive prostration; deep-stead local affection; intermittent pulse.
OPIUM.
Suffocative attacks during sleep; cough, with dyspnoea and blue face; profuse perspiration over the whole body (Lach.after sleep. Naja when lying down); painful attacks of coughing and strangling.
PHYTOLACCA.
Creeping chills and backache in the beginning; throat feels as if it were a large empty cavern; feeling as if a hot ball were lodged in fauces, and sensation as after swallowing choke-pears; pains in head, back and limbs, worse on least touch of neck; pains shoot into ears when swallowing; great prostration and restlessness; livid exudation upon tonsils and fauces; tonsils, soft palate and fauces highly inflamed and swollen, sore and sensitive, worse on taking hot fluids; breath offensive; cannot stand, when rising up in bed faint and dizzy; high fever and albuminuria.
Arg. nit., Arn., Baryta, Caust., Cocc., Cupr., Gels.,Helon., Lach., Phos., Phys., Plb., Rhus, Sulph., Thuja, Zinc.
OF THE LUNGS: Ant. tart., Camph., Moschus.
OF VISION: Gels., Kali Phos., Lach., Phys.
Apis has numbness of the extremities. Arg. met. has anaesthesia of the roof of the mouth and fauces (Kali brom.). Arnica has paralysis of the right side. Arsenicum has paralysis of the lower extremities. Causticum has paralysis of one arm and muscles of deglutition. Gels. has local tingling and incipient paralysis or anaesthesia. Lachesis has paralysis of the left side. Nux vomica has hemiplegia of the left side. Phosphorus has numbness of the fingers and feet, with great weakness. Secale has numbness of the extremities, palsy of some parts, painful tingling of the tongue. Zincum phos. has a post-scarletinal and diphtheritic pharyngeal paralysis.
These items are to be found, directly and especially, in the individual peculiarities as well as the disease as of the remedies; and the important problem is, to investigate and comprehend both with the utmost possible precision and to bring them into relation with each other so as to satisfy with the necessary perfectness the fundamental principle Similia Similibus.
With what comprehensiveness the founder of the homoeopathic school and his early immediate pupils, recognized and met this necessity, appears most clearly from their writings. But many younger homoeopathists appear not to have thoroughly understood the importance and necessity of this part of therapeutics, but instead thereof, seem to lay a preponderating weight upon general physiology and pathology which in recent times have made such wonderful growth, sciences which teach indeed to recognize the disease with certainty but not to cure it. It needs only to compare the more recent records of clinical cases, even those which are published as model cases, with the earlier ones, to show that my assertions are just. C.VON BOENNINGHAUSEN.
